Fullerton, Calif., teacher charged with felonies for sex with students

FULLERTON, Calif., Feb. 23 (UPI) -- A Fullerton, Calif., school teacher who admitted having sex with two students has been arrested on felony sexual misconduct charges, school officials said.

In a statement posted on its website, the Fullerton California School District said Melissa Lindgren, an eighth-grade teacher at Nicolas Junior High School, was arrested Friday after admitting to police she engaged in sexual misconduct with two male students.

Fullerton police said in a statement Lindgren, 28, of La Mirada, Calif., was charged with child molestation, child annoyance and "dissemination of harmful matter to a minor," and has been released on $100,000 bail, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The school district post said the misconduct "was reported by two brave students" and the report was "thoroughly investigated and swift action was taken."

District officials said in the statement Lindgren has been placed on administrative leave "pending due process."

"With 20 schools, 14,000 students, and over 600 teachers within the Fullerton School District, we believe that this is an unfortunate, isolated incident," the statement said.

School officials scheduled a public meeting and a parent meeting for Monday.

United Press International is a leading provider of news, photos and information to millions of readers around the globe via UPI.com and its licensing services.

With a history of reliable reporting dating back to 1907, today's UPI is a credible source for the most important stories of the day, continually updated - a one-stop site for U.S. and world news, as well as entertainment, trends, science, health and stunning photography. UPI also provides insightful reports on key topics of geopolitical importance, including energy and security.

A Spanish version of the site reaches millions of readers in Latin America and beyond.

UPI was founded in 1907 by E.W. Scripps as the United Press (UP). It became known as UPI after a merger with the International News Service in 1958, which was founded in 1909 by William Randolph Hearst. Today, UPI is owned by News World Communications.